Frank Reich: Our defense may not have big names, but we have good players

Posted by Josh Alper on January 7, 2019, 9:01 AM EDT

AP

Colts defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus interviewed for the Browns head coaching job on Sunday to cap a weekend that started with his unit playing a great game in a 21-7 win over the Texans.

The job that Eberflus did in his first season in Indianapolis was overshadowed at times by Andrew Luck‘s return to form and the establishment of a capable offensive line after years of leaky groups up front on offense. There aren’t a lot of marquee names on the Colts defense, which may have kept some from paying attention to how much the Colts defense improved this year.

With eight teams left standing around the league, it’s harder to ignore what’s going on in Indy and head coach Frank Reich’s view of the unit is likely to become a popular one as a result.

“You hear people say we don’t have a bunch of Pro Bowl defensive players, a ‘big-name’ player,” Reich said, via the Indianapolis Star. “I don’t know about all that. All I know is we have good players.”

Linebacker Darius Leonard made the All-Pro team after being the top defensive rookie in the league this year, so recognition is starting to come for a group that won’t be flying under the radar much longer.

Eberflus is the right guy for the Browns at the right time. They’ve found a competitive Offense, but their Defense still ranks near the bottom of the barrel and has not improved significantly in two seasons under Gregg Williams.

It’s ironic that (at least in the playoffs) the Colts are to the Chiefs as the Patriots were to the Colts, and that the Colts will no doubt be adopting a modified version of the Patriots’ old offensive “Keep away from Peyton” offensive strategy against the Chiefs this weekend. Colts will run all day.

please, folks…the Colts have one of the best five QBs in the game—when healthy, a top-flight guard and a good WR and LB…AND THAT IS ALL;

so they beat the second weakest playoff team after the Bears with a QB still healing from a knee injury that not long ago would’ve ended his career;

they have no running game, no TE (anyone who thinks that Ebron’s fluke season after four pathetic ones means anything more than his playing for another huge contract he will lay down on like a 12-tear-old dog like he did in Detroit probably thinks a bowling ball is sharp) no pass rush without a blitz and no shutdown corner is going to have the devils own time trying to shutdown a legitimate franchise quarterback and his racehorse offence;

it’ll be another basketballer game like with the Rams, but it highly unlikely the Colts will score the 60 points necessary to win, even with Luck;

Dreemeagle wants to pretend like the Colts didn’t just drop 200 rushing yards on the #3 rush defense in the league. No running game, indeed. What’s KC ranked against the run? Oh, second-to-last? Yeah, no WAY the best OL in football takes advantage of THAT hot mess.

Pierre Desir might not be a classical “Shutdown” corner, but he’s shut Deandre Hopkins down TWICE.

That Colt defense plays like Chicago should have played – every player on the Colts defense gave it their all and the Chicago minature monsters had their biggest acquisition do absolutely nothing all game. Mack has always been more hype than substance. He disappears for halves of a game. Only this time he did it for two in one game.